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Jane Gardam is an English author that has written both children’s books and adult fiction. For her efforts, the writer has taken home numerous literary accolades.

+Biography

Jane Gardam wasn’t always called Jane Gardam. When she was born back in 1928, she was named Jean Mary Pearson. Life for Jane took an interesting turn when she attended Bedford College in London to study English on Scholarship.

Bedford College is now a part of the University of London. This put her on the path to pursuing a career in the literary arena. And she did just that when she finally left University in the 1940s, becoming a Red Cross Traveling librarian that took her skills to hospital libraries.

She eventually outgrew that post and took to journalism. Then came her marriage to David Gardam QC, with the couple eventually producing three children. Fans of Jane Gardam can trace her origins as an author all the way to ‘Black Faces, White Faces’, a book that Jane had published in 1975.

Though, it is understandable if some people do not recognize the book, which was targeted towards adults, because it is a collection of stories about Jamaica many of which are linked. While the book wasn’t exactly a big hit among readers, it drew critical acclaim, taking home a few notable awards.

Jane then quickly followed that particular victory with ‘God on the Rocks’, her first true novel for adults. Before that, Jane was primarily known for her work with children’s books, a reputation she garnered after she wrote ‘A Long Way from Verona’, a children’s book released in 1971 and which followed a thirteen year old protagonist.

However, even that book won Jane critical acclaim and accolades, placing her on the path to becoming a well rewarded author. Jane Garden is unique because most people think she got a late start in the business.

Jane was already in her 40s by the time she took up the pen. And yet she managed to achieve a level of success that many authors work all their lives to acquire.

In fact, some people might know Jane for being the only author to take home the Whitbread for best novel twice. Not only did her first children’s book attract a Phoenix Award but Jane has also won the David Higham prize, not to mention the Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize. This isn’t even taking into account the author’s Macmillan Silver Pen Award and the Katherine Mansfield Prize.

Besides being nominated for a booker price, Jane Gardam’s fans can also point to ‘God on the Rocks’ with some pride because the novel, Jane’s first for adults, became a television show in 1992.

Lesser known is ‘The Flight of the Maidens’, a book set after the Second World War and which found a place on ‘Women’s Hour’ on BBC Radio 4.

Jane Gardam is a bit of an anomaly. She is clearly an amazing author, one with various awards to justify her talent. And yet very few people know who she is or the fact that she has written novels for both adults and children.

Jane is a gifted artist and storyteller. When she isn’t writing about children, Jane is creating stories about middle-aged and even old protagonists.

+Faith Fox

Faith Fox saw tragedy and hardship as soon as she was born. Losing her mother to child birth was bad enough. But it didn’t help that her Doctor Father grew callous from the stress of his work and his life. Naturally, he showed little interest in the prospect of raising his child, not without help.

Faith’s life might have taken a more positive turn if Thomasina, her grandmother, had been around to pick up the slack. Unfortunately, Thomasina lacked the stomach to deal with her daughter’s death, choosing to run off to Egypt rather than showing Faith the love she had shown her mother.

It eventually comes down to Jack, her uncle and an ascetic priest with a curious interest in the occult to care for Faith.

This novel has a lot of levels. From the surface, the book seems to tell a relatively typical English tale that is surprisingly funny. But when you look closer, it is difficult to ignore all the dark elements, with Jane Gardam exploring the complicated lives of people when they reach crossroads and must make decisions that will affect them for years to come.

A lot of the characters in the book are not very likeable, which isn’t surprising. Jane tackles all the snobbery and political racism that one might expect to find in Faith and Jack’s community. And Jane isn’t afraid to show just how selfish people can be.

Faith is easily the most sympathetic of the characters because she is such a helpless element, only looking for someone to give her the right amount of attention and care, but instead being delegated to the part of helpless pawn by everyone in her life.

This book’s strongest aspect is Jane Gardam’s writing. She is as witty and as clever as ever.

+Old Filth

Sir Edward Feathers is a widower at the end of his life. From his days as a struggling lawyer to his time as a respected judge, Edward’s career has been nothing short of brilliant.

Now, with nothing to keep him afloat, not his family and certainly not his work, Edward can longer afford to ignore the wounds of his difficult childhood, wounds he has carried for a very long time.

Edward begins to slip back into the past as he muses about his life as a whole and attempts to find some peace with what he has done and where he came from.

This book from Jane Gardam has a lot of flashbacks, intertwining Edward’s past with his present as he relieves all the marvels and bittersweet moments of his existence. Edward’s peers and admirers always thought that he had an easy and fortunate life, probably because of his modest personality and good looks.

However, none of them knew of the hardships he suffered as an orphan child being sent to England to be raised by foster parents who neglected him.

This book proves why Jane Gardam is such a masterful storyteller. The novel, which is filled with warmth and humor, can get very heavyhearted at times, but it still leaves readers with a sense of hope in humanity.

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Featured Series

if you are a fan of Jack Reacher you need to read the "Peter Ash" series by Nick Petrie. Endorsed by Lee Child himself, this is a fantastic book series and is the best recommendation I can give for any fans of Reacher. More details.

Featured Author

If you’re a fan of standalone thrillers then be sure to read any of the standalones by Brad Parks. The guy is a master! I’ve read over 50 different authors of standalone thrillers in the last year and no-one stands out like Brad. More Details.

Did You Know…

In her mid thirties Enid Blyton went through some crisis in her life which included the death of her father. This troubled her emotionally and she began to show signs of instability. She started post marital affairs and in 1941 divorced her husband to marry Kenneth Fraser, a man she had met while she was still with her first husband. However she remained in her second marriage for the rest of her life.